When I woke up that morning, my first feeling was peace. The guild house was silent, and for a few seconds I even forgot that our list of debts was still pinned to the wall, like an annoying reminder that life never gave us a break. I stretched, rubbed my face, and got up slowly, feeling every muscle complain about the last mission. Nothing serious, but accumulated exhaustion always caught up eventually.
I stepped into the hallway and almost tripped over Vespera, who was sitting on the floor with her bow taken apart in her hands and an expression of pure frustration.
"You've been messing with that since yesterday," I said.
"That's because I want to see if there's something wrong with me or with the bow," she replied without looking up. "Because if it's me, I'll replace the whole piece."
"Vespera…"
"I'm serious!"
I sighed and let the subject drop. It was always better to wait for her to calm down on her own.
I went down the stairs toward the main hall, and as soon as I set foot on the last step, I smelled it. The smell of dust… and light? I don't know how to explain it. But I recognized it immediately.
Liriel was back.
And before I could even open my mouth, a flash burst in the middle of the room. It wasn't a big one—but it was enough to make Vespera scream from upstairs and Elara appear from the kitchen with the expression of someone who already knew something bad had happened.
In the center of the room, covered in soot, stood her.
"I… think I overdid it a little," Liriel muttered, coughing.
I walked over to her, trying not to laugh. "A little?"
Elara put her hands on her hips. "What did you try to cast this time?"
"A new light spell. Rank S!" Liriel said, raising a finger as if it were something to be proud of. "But maybe I… mixed up the runic order."
"Mixed up?" Vespera came down the stairs. "Liriel, you almost blew up the house!"
Liriel spread her arms, indignant. "That was an explosion? No! An explosion is when you destroy half the structure! This was a small luminous event."
I couldn't hold it in. I laughed.
Liriel turned to me immediately, offended. "Takumi!"
"What? It was funny."
She huffed, but deep down I knew she liked it when I laughed at her antics. At least… a little.
Later, after we had cleaned up the mess—or at least swept away the remaining soot—we all sat down in the hall. The morning light came in through the window, making everything feel cozier.
"So," I asked, "why did you suddenly show up with a spell you didn't even know how to cast?"
Liriel crossed her arms. "Because I wanted to help. You're always saying I'm useless. And I know I'm limited, but… I wanted to surprise you."
Elara sighed and sat down beside her. "Liriel… no one here wants you to get hurt trying to be something you're not."
"I didn't get hurt!"
"You burned yourself," Vespera pointed out, indicating Liriel's hair, where there was clearly a singed strand.
Liriel quickly put her hand there, horrified. "What? But… but… I had just fixed that!"
I laughed again, and Liriel threw a cushion in my direction. It hit me right on the forehead.
"That was on purpose," I said.
"Maybe," she replied.
With the tension broken, the mood became lighter. We stayed there talking, joking around, laughing at recent stories. It was one of those rare moments when I truly felt that the group was… working. Even with our differences, mistakes, and limitations.
But of course… peace never lasts long.
A strange noise coming from outside caught my attention. It wasn't loud, but it echoed through the window like a buzzing sound. I stood up immediately.
"Elara, did you hear that?"
She frowned. "Mana vibrating. Weak, but… unstable."
Vespera was already grabbing her bow. "What is it now? Please let it be something easy. Like a slime. Or a giant chicken. I'll take anything that doesn't explode."
Liriel stood up too. "If you need light, I—"
"Please," I interrupted before she created another unnecessary luminous event, "only use magic if I ask. And only magic you already know how to do."
She pouted, but nodded.
We left the house and followed the street, alert. The sound was coming from the direction of Vailor's central square. And as we got closer, I realized it wasn't unstable mana. It was… a glow.
And who was standing in the center of the square?
A hooded figure, holding a crystal that pulsed.
"Oh no," I muttered. "I remember this. This is…"
"The guy with the magic torches?" Vespera asked.
"Worse."
The man turned toward us, his hood falling back and revealing his irritatingly happy face.
"Takumi! My boy! Perfect! You arrived at just the right time!"
It was the guild's mad researcher, a master of questionable experiments and responsible for at least three reports of partial destruction of the city.
"No," I said immediately. "If you're planning anything involving an unstable crystal in the middle of the square, the answer is no."
"But it's safe!"
Elara raised an eyebrow. "Safe like the last experiment, which almost opened a portal?"
"That was an interpretative misunderstanding!"
Vespera grumbled. "I'm leaving."
"Wait," the researcher continued. "I just need a little light mana to stabilize the crystal. Pure light mana. It's simple. It's safe. And you have the perfect person!"
At that moment, everyone looked at Liriel.
She went pale. "Me?"
I ran a hand over my face. "This is going to go wrong."
"It won't! Trust me!" the researcher insisted.
Liriel looked at us, nervous. "I… can try. I swear I'll use the basic spell. The most basic one I have."
And incredibly enough… she did it.
The crystal glowed, became stable, and the researcher started celebrating as if he had just saved the world.
And then…
Poof.
The crystal released a wave of brightness that dyed the entire square white. Nothing exploded. Nothing broke. But everyone's vision was completely compromised for a few seconds.
When I regained my sight, the researcher was kneeling, crying with joy.
"It worked! It worked!"
I took a deep breath. "Liriel… what did you do?"
She smiled shyly. "I… just made light. Very weak."
"That," I said, "was weak?"
"It was supposed to be."
In the end, no one got hurt. Nothing exploded. And in a way, Liriel really did help.
When we returned home, she looked radiant.
"See? I'm not so useless after all."
I smiled. "I never said you were."
She looked at me, surprised, her cheeks lightly flushing.
"Takumi… sometimes you know how to say things."
"Sometimes."
Vespera snorted behind me. "Great. Now besides almost blinding the entire city, she's also going to get full of herself."
Elara laughed softly. "Let her have this moment."
And I… watched the three of them. So different, so chaotic, so unpredictable.
But they were my group. My daily confusion. My troubled peace.
And in that moment, I realized that… all of it was worth it.